NFL executives like to say that deadlines make deals. But that's not so in the case of Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence.

At least not yet.

The Cowboys officially placed their franchise tag on Lawrence on Monday afternoon, about 24 hours ahead of the 3 p.m. Tuesday deadline, to ensure that their top pass rusher won't be going anywhere once free agency opens on March 14. The two sides aren't close on finalizing a long-term deal for Lawrence, sources said, but remain hopeful they can eventually get a deal done.

If the Cowboys stick with the tag on Lawrence, he'll play 2018 under a one-year deal for $17.143 million that's fully guaranteed and goes against the salary cap.

Lawrence took to Twitter after the news broke Monday, joking about all the taxes he'll have to pay, and seemingly a bit surprise to hear via social media.

Cowboys executives met with Lawrence's agent, David Canter, last week at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis to see how far apart the sides were on working out a long-term contract extension. Canter tweeted the following Monday evening:

With both sides holding leverage in negotiations, a deal hasn't come together quickly. Lawrence is coming off a career year in which he finished tied for second in the NFL with 14 1/2 sacks, but he underwent back surgeries in consecutive offseasons before that.

The Cowboys have until July 16 to sign Lawrence to a long-term deal that would likely significantly lower his 2018 cap hit. After that, they would have to wait until after the 2018 season to try to extend him.

"There are advantages that the franchise tag gives you," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Saturday from the combine. "It creates some leverage to get a long-term deal done. You certainly have some ambiguity as a player when you have a one-year deal. You have it as a club, too. But you can read some tea leaves during that year. I'm satisfied at where the numbers are, both Lawrence and the Cowboys are getting value here."

The state of the Cowboys after placing franchise tag on DeMarcus Lawrence, and what comes next

The Cowboys are expected to have about $20 million in cap space in 2018 (that's still a moving target with the salary cap not officially set), but if they have to keep the tag on Lawrence, almost all of that sum would be wiped out. Also, the Cowboys are still trying to decide whether to use a first- or second-round tender on restricted free-agent defensive lineman David Irving. A first-round tender would cost the Cowboys $4.1 million against the cap, a second-round tender $2.9 million.

Tagging Lawrence now will force them to make some other moves to free up cap space to use when free agency opens next week. The Cowboys will restructure center Travis Frederick's contract and could also restructure linebacker Sean Lee's deal. Those moves would free up about $10 million. The Cowboys could gain more cap space by restructuring left tackle Tyron Smith's deal again, but that's a move they'd like to avoid if possible.

The Cowboys can also gain cap space by signing right guard Zack Martin to a long-term deal. He's scheduled to count $9.3 million against the cap in 2018 on the fifth-year option.

Of course, more cap space could come for the Cowboys if they release players, such as receiver Dez Bryant and cornerback Orlando Scandrick. Don't expect that to happen immediately.

In 2015, the Cowboys used their franchise tag on Bryant before eventually working out a five-year, $70 million contract extension with him just before the mid-July deadline. Getting the extension done with Bryant saved the Cowboys about $5.8 million against the cap that year. A Lawrence extension would likely save more money against the cap for Dallas.

But Canter isn't likely to give in much on follow-up conversations with the Cowboys, considering that just two years ago he negotiated the richest contract for a defensive end in NFL history. Canter led the charge on the Giants signing Olivier Vernon to a five-year, $85 million deal with a whopping $52.5 million guaranteed after the Dolphins rescinded their transition tag. Vernon received starting quarterback money after he registered only 7 1/2 sacks in 2015. That's about half as many as Lawrence recorded in 2017.

Sean Lee on DeMarcus Lawrence's season: "He was unbelievable. To us, he was the defensive MVP of this league. Not only because of the sacks and the pressure he got, but because of the effort he played with in the run game."